“The Martin and Lewis Show” was a radio comedy-variety program in the United States. It was broadcast on NBC beginning April 3, 1949, and ending July 14, 1953. It starred the comedy team of Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. Martin was the singer of the pair, and Lewis was the comedian. it was named Favorite Radio Comedy Show in Radio-TV Mirror magazine's 1952 poll.
The series was produced by Bob Adams, and directed by Robert L. Redd and Dick Mack. Written by Ed Simmons and Norman Lear, although they were not hired until late 1950.
This is the pilot episode, and was not numbered. It was originally 37 minutes, but was later edited to 30 minutes for broadcast.
Regulars on the program included Ben Alexander, Sheldon Leonard, Florence MacMichael, The Skylarks, and Mary Hatcher. Announcers were Jimmy Wallington and Johnny Jacobs. Dick Stabile was both the bandleader and a foil for Martin and Lewis.
Dean Martin was born Dino Paul Crocetti in Steubenville, Ohio, in 1917. He made his screen debut in a short playing a singer in Art Mooney’s band, but his first big screen role was 1949’s My Friend Irma with Jerry Lewis. This began a partnership that would be one of the most successful screen pairings in cinema history. Later, he also worked frequently members of “the Rat Pack”: Frank Sinatra, Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford, and Sammy Davis Jr. His persona was that of a playboy, usually seen with a glass of booze and a cigarette. Martin appeared on “The Lucy Show” in what Ball later said was her favorite episode of the series. Martin and Lucille Ball appeared on many TV variety and award shows together and made the TV movie “Lucy Gets Lucky” in 1975. He died on Christmas Day in 1995 at age 78.
Jerry Lewis was a comedian, actor, and singer born in Newark, New Jersey in 1926. He was known for his slapstick humor and was originally paired up with Dean Martin, forming the famed comedy team of Martin and Lewis. His long-standing commitment to hosting the annual Muscular Dystrophy telethon in 2010, after 44 years, earning him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977. He was also presented the French Legion of Honor in 1984. He appeared with Lucille Ball Lewis on “Danny Thomas’s Wonderful World of Vaudeville” in 1965. He died in 2014.
Frank Nelson (Agent) was born on May 6, 1911 (three months before Lucille Ball) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He started working as a radio announcer at the age of 15. He later appeared on such popular radio shows as “The Great Gildersleeve,” “Burns and Allen,” and “Fibber McGee & Molly”. He performed in 11 episodes of “My Favorite Husband.” On “I Love Lucy” he holds the distinction of being the only actor to play two recurring roles: Freddie Fillmore and Ralph Ramsey, as well as six one-off characters, including the frazzled train conductor in “The Great Train Robbery” (ILL S5;E5), a character he repeated on “The Lucy Show.” Aside from Lucille Ball, Nelson is perhaps most associated with Jack Benny and was a fifteen-year regular on his radio and television programs.
Lucille Ball (Guest Star) as then finishing her first season of her radio series “My Favorite Husband”. She was two months away from the premiere of her film Sorrowful Jones with Bob Hope.
Synopsis ~ It's time to go over to Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis's hotel room before they do their first radio show.
EPISODE
In Jerry and Dean’s hotel room, they are getting dressed to do their show when the telephone rings. They fear it is someone from NBC wanting to know where they are. The phone continues to ring.
Dean reasons that they did well in nightclubs, but Jerry says those people paid to get in, while radio audiences get in for free. Jerry is afraid his act may offend someone, and he’d get sent to Siberia. Dean thinks the radio show may lead to fame in motion pictures. Jerry can’t see the positive and sees only failure. The phone rings again.
Jerry answers the phone and it is his agent (Frank Nelson), wondering where the h-e-c-k they are. Dean says they can’t leave until he rehearses his romantic number.
Dean (and orchestra) launches into "You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)" by Freddy James and Larry Stock in 1946.
There’s a knock on the door. It’s the maid come to clean. She notices that the room is clean - and fears she’ll be fired. She is upset that their towels say his and hers instead of his and his. Jerry tells her not to dust the dresser because he keeps his kitten in there.
Outside the NBC Studio, two women are excited to see Martin and Lewis. Lewis stands behind them, although they don’t recognize him. They faun over Dean’s good looks and talent, much to Lewis’s dismay. Dean strolls up and the girls get giddy with excitement.
Inside the studio, the orchestra tunes up and everyone shouts hello: producer, director, singer, technicians. When Dean needs quiet to rehearse, Jerry feels left out. Dean introduces Lucille Ball, but she’s angry that he’s upset Jerry.
Lucille promises she’ll protect Jerry from Dean. Lucille starts to notice how athletic and handsome Dean is. She gradually softens. Suddenly Lucille is defending Dean to Jerry!
JERRY: “You do think I’ll be a big success, don’t ya Lucille?”
LUCILLE: “Why not? Lassie made it!”
Lucille says she’s planned an opening night party for the boys, but is concerned about Jerry’s behavior.
Oops! Jerry Lewis trips over his words, and ad libs: “It’s too close to the paper, whaddya want?”
Jerry defends his behavior with unusually florid language. Lucille says there will be young ladies at the party.
JERRY: “I like ‘em about my height.”
LUCILLE: “Betty Grable will be there.”
JERRY: “I like ‘em about my age.”
LUCILLE: “Ann Blyth will be there.”
JERRY: “And I like ‘em about my intelligence.”
LUCILLE: “I’m sorry, Margaret O’Brien can’t stay out that late.”
MARTIN: “Shall we dress?”
LUCILLE: “Naturally. We don’t want the cops.”
They get the cue that they have thirty second until air.
Lucille, Jerry, and Dean sing “The Money Song” lyrics written by Harold Rome for the musical That’s The Ticket.
They are back in their hotel suite about to go to sleep, when the maid knocks on the door. She tells them they have to get out of bed - she’s put on the wrong size sheets!
NBC MONITOR RADIO 1954 NEW YORK FILM CRITIC AWARDS WITH SYDNEY SMITH.
Interviews took place in the famed Sardis Restaurant in New York City
(in a series along with Rudy Vallee, Thelma Ritter, Ben Grower, Loring Smith, Vincent Sardy)
TRANSCRIPTION BELOW:
NBC: “Hi, I just have to talk to you, will you excuse me… Always for Grace Kelly. And sitting opposite me now is lovely Grace Kelly. Welcome and congratulations.”
GRACE: “Thank you, very very much”
NBC: “Well now, you are a real Triple Threat’ girl as they say in the business because you won it for Rear Window,’ for ‘Dial M for Murder,’ and ‘The Country Girl’ – all quite different parts, weren't they?”
GRACE: “Yes, they were. I was very grateful for the chance to play such varied roles.”
NBC: “Tell me something, how did you get started in motion pictures? You came from television originally?”
GRACE: “Well my first part in pictures came when people from Fox saw me in ‘The Father’ with Raymond Massey and Mady Christians, and I went out to do a small part in a picture called ‘Fourteen Hours’ and that was my first part. And then I went on to do ‘High Noon,’ and after that, I signed my contract with MGM and went to Africa to do ‘Mogambo.’
NBC: “Have you travelled very much since you´ve started making pictures?”
GRACE: “¡Oh, yes! I´ve been very lucky. I´ve been to so many wonderful places. I´ve been to Africa and to France, and South America and London.”
NBC: “¡Oh, yes! that is exciting. I hear you´re going back to Africa. Is that true, or is that just gossip in the papers?”
GRACE: “Well there is talk about it, but I don't think it will be for a couple years.”
NBC: “Well now, how does a young lady coming from legitimate theatre and television go out to Hollywood and get so many pictures in one year? You´re really quite a… well, I don´t know what, but you must have the magic touch. How did you do it?”
GRACE: “Well it´s sheer luck! Really, I happened to be there when all of these things came my way. It was a freak thing, and I´m very, very grateful for it.”
NBC: “That´s very sweet and I think not only should you be so sweet to say something like that, but absolutely you´ve proved it in every sense of the word that you´re so capable and that you´ve done such a marvellous job. We have another picture of yours now at the Music Hall, “The Bridges of Toko-Ri.” How did you do that? Did you do that in Hollywood too?”
GRACE: “Sí, most of the company went to Japan, but I was filming ‘Rear Window’ at the time and couldn´t go. I was very sorry about that, but when the company came back from Tokyo I worked with them at the studios at Paramount.”
NBC: “What are you up to now?”
GRACE: “Well I was just out to the Coast for a quick visit this week. I left on Tuesday and came back on Friday. It was my quickest trip to date. I went out to talk to the studio about future plans. There´s nothing definite so far but there are several things we´re talking about.”
NBC: “Let me see now… you went out to Hollywood when was that exactly?”
GRACE: “Tuesday”
NBC: “No, I mean the first time, to make the first picture…”
GRACE: “The first time was in 1951.”
NBC: “And how many pictures have you made since that time. It´s 1955 now, just 1955.”
GRACE: “I´ve made nine.”
NBC: “9 pictures… That´s a wonderful record, Grace Kelly. Listen, didn´t you win an award last year of some sort, as I recall, for another picture?”
GRACE: “No, I was nominated for an award for Supporting Actress, but I didn´t win.”
NBC: “Well that was a good beginning. And for all supporting actresses who have almost won, this is certainly – if Grace Kelly is an example – a very hopeful sign. Grace Kelly, when you start out in this business, did you go to drama school or did you just make up your mind you were going to be an actress, and you just barged in where angels fear to tread?”
GRACE: “Well, a little bit of both. I went to dramatic school at the American Academy for two years, and then came time for barging. (laughs)”
NBC: “Tell me, if you were going to give a tip to a young lady listening to this program, what would you suggest are the ingredients that they have for success in the theatre or motion pictures, aside from talent?”
GRACE: “Well, it is very difficult to say. The main thing is that you first have to decide if it´s something that you really want to do. Whatever you want to do, if you believe in it and work at it hard enough, your dream should come true.”
NBC: “In other words, you really have to stick to it, don´t you? Not just one shot and try it, and if it fails, you give up?”
GRACE: “Well, If it´s something that you love and that you want to do, you don´t mind giving up other things for it.”
NBC: “Now of all the great classics in the world, of all the great plays that we´ve heard of if you had your choice, which part would you choose to play?”
GRACE: “It´s funny, I have no dream to play any particular part. There are many I would like to do, but there´s not one that I´m dying to do. I´ve been lucky to play a lot of very different parts and for the next few years, because I´m still learning, I´d like to try to play as many different roles as possible.”
NBC: “Have you any plans for your personal life, or should I keep my mouth shut about that? Are we going to see you get married, have children, settle down, or are you going to go on with this career of yours?”
GRACE: “Well, of course I´d love to be married and have children, but I don´t think it´s the time for that just now. I´m still more interested in my career than marriage, and I don´t think I could do both at once very well right now.”
NBC: Well that´s certainly very interesting to hear from an actress, and I think very, very honest and candid of her. It certainly takes a lot of energy and time. Do you still study? You know, so many actresses that I know, like Geraldine Page, and so forth, they still work, they still study, they still sing, and they train. Do you still find it helpful to study?”
GRACE: “¡Oh, yes! I think one must always continue to study.”
NBC: “Do you have any other interests? Do you paint or write?”
GRACE: “Well, I paint only for my own amusement, merely for relaxation.”
NBC: “That certainly is a wonderful hobby to have. Do you use oil? Watercolour?”
GRACE: “Oil occasionally, but mostly charcoal and pastel.”
NBC: “And what do you like to do, scenes or people?”
GRACE: “I prefer people.”
NBC: “I thought so, it would seem right somehow. Of all the parts that you have played so far, which do you think is the one… Which is the one… as you look on the screen, most performers feel a little odd about seeing themselves on the screen the first time. As you looked at yourself in the different pictures, which one did you feel was the best job and the one that you liked to do the most?”
GRACE: “That´s hard to say. I feel that ‘The Country Girl’ was the part that was more of a challenge than anything else I had done and I enjoyed it, not only for that reason, but that I felt it was an important picture and an important story about people, and I really enjoyed doing it.
NBC: “Well it´s been a great pleasure having you, Grace Kelly, with us. I want to wish you all the luck in the world. It couldn´t have happened to a very nicer girl, I´m sure.
Actress Lesley Woods on the Blue Network radio thriller Inner Sanctum, December 16, 1942. The caption on this promotional photograph reads:
"The ghosts and goblins may have had their field day on Hallowe'en, but on the BLUE Network thriller, "Inner Sanctum", terror reigns supreme every Sunday evening. Above, as exhibit A, lovely Lesley Woods cringes before the clutching hand."
The Radio Entertainers and Announcers Collection 1937-1945, PR 095, New-York Historical Society.
Click to hear a rare episode of the forgotten NBC Radio program Second Sunday. This documentary-news program was a monthly extension of the type of production NBC Radio was doing at the time. Monitor, a magazine show, was NBC Radio’s primary original production at the time. Sort of a forgotten and neglected era of radio. Now, what will it be like in the Year 2000?
